Woman who crashed on I-94 was watching Netflix while driving

We see them all the time. Warnings on wheelbarrows saying, “Not intended for highway use.” Signs that read, “Do not allow children to play in dishwasher.” Hair dryers that warn, “Do not use while sleeping.”

At first you squint, and then you laugh, and then, inevitably, it occurs to you: If someone bothered to write that warning, it means somebody has already done it.

All this is to say that on Tuesday, Minnesota State Patrol’s Twitter account warned users against watching Netflix while driving. And yes, it's because somebody had gone and done it.

The incident in question happened on October 26 between Moorhead and Fergus Falls. A driver in a Subaru Impreza was heading east on 1-94 when she began to cross over lanes and swerve onto the shoulder. By the time state troopers caught up with her, she had run off the road and crashed into the median cables.

They found 20-year-old Taylor Ann Thiets from Maplewood, Minnesota in the driver’s seat, sober and relatively unhurt. But she had an iPad sitting on the passenger seat of her car, which she admitted was strategically positioned so she could watch Netflix.

A spokesperson with Minnesota State Patrol declined to comment while the investigation remains open, so it’s impossible to know what she was thinking. Or, perhaps more importantly, what she was watching.

All we know is that, for the record, State Patrol has advised against watching Netflix while driving. We can’t say they didn’t warn us.